A/N - Hey guys! I was able to update way sooner than I originally thought. Hope you like this chapter :)

Chapter 2 - Surprises

I wake up to a damp cloth being pressed firmly against my forehead. I can hear a woman's voice not too far away.

"She's been out for about a minute... This is actually pretty common, sir... Yes... Yes..." She answers. My eyes start to flutter open and are met by bright fluorescent lights. I'm laying on my back on a cot and the nurse who I thanked moments before is standing above me with a washcloth in her hand. Once she sees that my eyes are open she stops dabbing the cloth against my skin and looks up at the woman on the phone. The latter quickly tells the person on the other end of the line that I just woke up and to take their time getting here. I begin to sit up but the nurse stops me.

"Stay on your back for now, sweetie. You want to let all of the blood rush back to your head." She explains.

"What happened?" I ask as I rest my head back down.

"You got up to leave and then you fainted. I caught you before you hit the floor and moved you onto the cot. You were only out for a minute or two." She tells me gently. I crease my eyebrows together. I fainted? I ate a pretty decent amount of food before coming here so it couldn't be from that. The nurse must notice my confusion because she also adds, "This happens more often than you'd think. It's probably nothing but you should make an appointment with your doctor for a check-up just to be safe."

"Your boyfriend is on his way here right now." The receptionist supplies in a reassuring tone but I can't help but feel bothered that she had to call him. Edward will surely make a bigger deal out of this than necessary. It's in his nature to worry. I can already picture him speeding through town to get to me. I close my eyes and try to relax my body while I wait for him to arrive but it isn't long before I hear him burst through the doors. I look up just in time to see him jogging over to me, anxiety clearly plastered on his face. I lean forward and start to get up just as he rushes to my side to help me. I smirk at the nurse standing on the opposite side of the bed from Edward and roll my eyes. She has to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from laughing out loud. We both thank the nurse and receptionist and then make our way out to the parking lot. I start to pull away from Edward –who has his arm wrapped around me – but he stops walking and turns to me with a confused expression.

"What?" I ask.

"Where are you going?"

"To my car." I tell him though I say it like it's a question.

"Bell, you can't drive." He sighs and nods his head for me to follow him to his car.

"But... but... what about my car? We can't just leave it here."

"We aren't. Rosalie and Emmett are going to drive over here and bring it back to your apartment." He informs me as he opens the passenger side door to his car. I roll my eyes at him for the umpteenth time in a ten-minute period as I get into the car. He goes around to his side and starts driving towards town. It's quite for a few seconds as I steal a glance at Edward. His eyes are on the road but his brows are furrowed and he looks like he's seeing something other than the empty highway lined with evergreens. I'm about to open my mouth to ask him what he's thinking about but he addresses me before I get the chance.

"What's my middle name?" He asks me.

"Uh, what?"

"Answer the question, please."

"Anthony." I supply. He nods his head, looking satisfied.

"Edward, what – "

"When's your birthday?" He continues and I let out a dramatic sigh.

"Oh my god, I'm fine. You don't have to interrogate me. I know all of the answers to these questions. There's nothing wrong with my head." I tell him. He glances at me from the corner of his eye with a big smirk on his face and one eyebrow quirked. "Oh, hush!" I exclaim, knowing exactly where he's going with that. He laughs loudly but it's not long before that concerned look returns to his face. I rub my hand along the back of his neck in an attempt to calm him down.

"Really, honey, I'm alright. I promise." I say in the most soothing voice that I can manage. I can see his body relax slightly and I take the opportunity to move my hand from behind his neck to his thigh. "Are youalright? Maybe there's something I can do to help you wind down..." I trail off as my hand slides slowly up his leg. Before I can get to my desired destination though he covers my hand with his, stopping me.

"Promise me you will call on Monday and make an appointment to see your doctor, Bella." He pleads. I give him a small smile. For as long as I've known Edward he's always been this way. Even when we first met at the diner he was always able to notice if I was feeling more tired than usual or if something was bothering me. It isn't just me that he's like this with either. It's his friends, his employees, his family. It's just in his nature.

"I will." I promise and I can see that he believes me. He pops a Fleetwood Mac CD into the car stereo and we continue the rest of the short ride to my apartment humming along to the songs.

When we arrive at my place I quickly make my way up the stairs to the second floor and over to my studio apartment. The building is just a few blocks away from the town center and is 4 stories high. Most of the people who reside here are from outside of town and chose this complex due to cheaper prices. In fact, the only other person besides me who lives here and is also from Forks is Peter, one of Edward's bartenders and a friend of ours. I met him through Alice and Jasper when I first moved here; he was working at the local clothing store at the time. When Edward eventually moved here and opened his bar, Peter immediately applied to work there as he felt he could no longer work in retail because it was, in his words, evil. After a few months of working there he saved enough money to move out of his parent's house and get a place of his own. It was Edward who recommended that Peter move into this apartment building. I've always suspected he did that because it makes him feel better knowing that there's someone we both know and trust living in the same building as me.

I walk inside and leave the front door open for Edward who is following a few feet behind me. I'm immediately greeted by my sweet little Sphinx cat, Zafrina. She rubs against my leg as she purrs in greeting to me and I reach down and scoop her up into my arms. Edward walks in moments later and scrunches up his face at the sight of her.

"Be nice." I warn him as I hold Zafrina even closer to my chest. Edward chuckles and makes his way over to my small kitchen, reaching into the fridge for two water bottles. He walks past me, causing Zafrina to fidget in my arms in an attempt to follow him, and settles onto my dark blue sofa. I release Zafrina and she runs straight for Edward, jumping into his lap and curling into a perfect little ball there. Edward lifts his hands up so as not to have to touch her and then – after making eye contact with me – he pats her on the head a couple of times.

"You're terrible, all she wants is for you to love her." I say matter-of-factly as I make my way over to the two of them.

"What? I'm letting her lay here. How is that terrible?"

I narrow my eyes at him. "Because you're just tolerating her. She needs some real lovin'" I say as I scratch Zafrina's favorite spot behind her ear. She closes her eyes and leans her head into my hand. "See. She's just a sweet little kitty cat who wants some attention."

"Bell, she's barely a cat. She looks like a weird mutant-alien-thing. I'm convinced that you found her in some radioactive ditch and just told me that parking lot story as a cover." He jokes, referring to when I first found Zafrina in the diner parking lot after work one night.

"Shh, she'll hear you. You don't want to make her self-conscious." I whisper.

"With ears like those I don't think there's anything she can'thear." Edward teases. I elbow him in his side as we both laugh. He reaches his arm around me and pulls me close against his side, kissing my temple.

We both enjoy the next few seconds in a comfortable silence before we decide it's too nice of a day to waste inside. We pack up some lunch and decide to have a picnic at a nearby park by the water. From where we're sitting we can see the tops of mountains peeking out just above the evergreens. The Autumn breeze makes it just cool enough to have to wear a sweater while the shining sun and cloudless sky make it so that it isn't uncomfortably cold. We decide to have dinner at my place tonight and on our way back there we stop at the bar so that Edward can check in on things. Peter and Rosalie are working tonight and I go over and say hi to them before heading over to Tia, a friend of Edward's, as well as the owner of the toy store in town. We talk for the next few minutes as she tells me about how business is doing and how wedding planning is going. She's engaged to Benjamin Amun who manages his family-owned ice cream parlor right next to Tia's store. I briefly think back to when the two started dating. At first I thought they made an odd couple but as I got to know them better through Edward I realized that they balanced each other out perfectly. Benjamin is very laid back and doesn't care much for appearances. He can almost always be seen with a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers and with a somewhat messy head of hair. Tia, on the other hand, is very invested in her hair, make-up, and clothing. Her long, think curls are always scrunched and styled with various gels and serums. She regularly gets her hair highlighted a beautiful blonde color that contrasts perfectly with her dark skin and she's almost always sporting colorful kimonos, bangles, hoop earrings, and stilettos. It seems that Tia's high maintenance tendencies and Benjamin's laid-back persona rub off perfectly on the other.

I continue to listen to Tia rant about how the groomsmen's ties aren't the right shade of red when I feel a sharp pang in my stomach. I clutch my arms around my midsection as my face contorts into a painful expression.

"Uh, Bella? You alright, hon? You don't look so good..." Tia notes but I barely have time to answer as I hop off of my bar stool and run towards the bathroom. I dash into one of the open stalls and lean against the cool stall door. I feel like I'm about to throw up but instead of focusing on that I focus on my breathing. I take five slow, deep breaths as I will myself to feel better. Slowly but surely the nausea begins to pass. The bathroom door opens and I hear Rosalie's voice call out to me.

"Bella, are you okay? Edward saw you run in here and asked me to come check on you."

"I'm fine." I call back. I inhale once more and then open the stall door and walk over to the sinks. I run some cold water and splash it onto my face. When I look up into the mirror I'm met by Rosalie's worried expression.

"You don't look fine. You look a little pale."

"I'm really alright. It's been a long day. I think I just need to get home and get some rest." I assure her and she nods in agreement. As we walk out of the bathroom and back towards the bar I can feel everyone looking at me. One set of eyes in particular are piercing through me but I can't look up to meet them just yet. I sit on one of the stools and continue taking deep breaths as Edward says good night to everyone. When he reaches me he puts his hand on my lower back and stares down at me before asking if I'm ready to go. I nod quickly and walk with him outside and back to his car. He opens my door for me before getting in on his side. He's quiet the entire ride back to my place. Finally, once we park, Edward cuts the engine and turns towards me.

"Are you okay, baby?"

"I'm f-" I start but he interrupts me.

"You're not fine. You passed out this morning and now you're throwing up. I'm worried about you; I've never seen you sick like this Bell."

"I didn't actually throw up. I just felt like I was going to." I say lamely. His worried expression doesn't falter so I add, "I know, I know. I'm sure it's just a stomach virus or something but regardless I'll definitely be calling my doctor on Monday. Maybe tonight and tomorrow we can just take it easy? I'd still like you to stay tonight but if you're afraid of catching whatever this is then I understand if you want to go home instead..." I trail off as a soft smile spreads across his face and he shakes his head.

"There's no way I'm leaving you alone in this condition. Come on, let's get inside. I'll make you some soup." He smiles, bringing my hand to his lips and kissing my knuckles.

The rest of the weekend is filled with Netflix and cans of Campbell's soup. I end up calling James Sullivan, the owner of the book store that I was supposed to volunteer at on Sunday, and let him know that I'm sick and won't be able to come in. Edward calls Jasper and Alice to cancel our plans with them as well. There are a few more instances where I feel sick but just like the first time nothing actually comes of it. Edward stays glued to my side the entire time, making sure I won't have to lift a finger for anything. Part of me acknowledges how annoyed I should probably feel from him hovering the way that he is but the truth is that it doesn't bother me in the slightest. He and I both know that I can take care of myself but while he's around it's pretty nice to know that I don't have to.

By Monday morning Edward is back at work while I'm taking the day off to see my doctor. As I sit in the quiet waiting room of doctor Black's practice I try to keep myself busy by thinking about Halloween. It's about two weeks away and Edward and I are throwing a party at the bar for it. I think about the possible costumes that he and I could wear. I really want to be Morticia and have Edward be Gomez from The Addams Family but he really wants to go as Popeye with me as Olive Oil. I continue to imagine the two of us in each set of costumes – trying to decide which one would look the best – when one of the nurses calls my name, effectively snapping me back to reality.

I follow her just outside the bathroom where she hands me a cup to provide a urine sample. I thank my earlier self for drinking lots of water this morning before using the bathroom and placing the cup in the revolving metal window of the bathroom wall. I then follow the nurse to a small room where she takes my temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate while asking me about my symptoms.

"Everything looks good as far as your vitals go. It sounds like you're probably just dealing with a simple stomach bug but the doctor will be in shortly and he'll be able to let you know exactly what's going on. Sit tight for a minute, alright?" She smiles before exiting the room and closing the door behind her.

Alone again, my mind wanders back to my Halloween predicament. I'm really starting to feel stressed out, as ridiculous as that sounds. I really pride myself on going all out with my costumes and Edward is sort of being a kill joy in regards to my awesome Addams Family idea. I sigh and then let out a little chuckle, counting myself lucky that my life is so deprived of any real drama that this is an actual problem for me. Just then there's a knock at the door.

"Come in!" I say in a sing-song voice as doctor Black begins to enter the room, greeting me with a familiar smile. Billy Black – who happens to be Jacob's father – is a short, older man with rectangular glasses and long black hair. I've been coming to him since I moved to Forks six years ago as he's the closest doctor to town.

"Well, hello Ms. Bella! It's good to see you; perhaps not under these circumstances but still, always a pleasure." He beams and I giggle, nodding in agreement.

"I know what you mean. It's good to see you too, Doc. So... do we know why I've been feeling so whacky lately?" I question. He's looking down at his clipboard but his eyes flicker up to mine for a moment before looking back down. He nods his head slowly before answering.

"Yes, I believe we know exactly why you've been feeling – as you put it – 'whacky'. Before I get to that however I'd like to ask you a few questions."

"Shoot."

"Are you still on birth control?" He asks and I nod, knowing that he needs to know this in order to figure out which medications will be best to prescribe to me. His mouth turns down into what looks like a frown for a moment before his eyes meet mine again. "Okay. Now, I see you fainted a few days ago and have been dealing with bouts of nausea all weekend. Have you been feeling particularly fatigued lately?"

"I guess a little" I shrug, thinking back to this past weekend. I did feel pretty tired, taking a few short naps throughout the day. I look up at Billy, a clear expression of sympathy written all over his face, and I begin to feel panic settle deep inside me as my mind starts to play catch up. "Wha-what's going on?" I stutter, though I already know exactly what's going on.

"Bella, I know you weren't planning for this but above all I want you to remember that you do have options available to you. I don't want you to feel afraid –"

"Just give it to me straight, Doc." I mutter as I rub my temples, just needing to hear him say the words already.

"You're pregnant, Bella."

A/N - Well, there it is, I'm sure a lot of you saw that coming. Please leave lots of reviews so I know what you guys think!